Hi! My name is Olga Tkachenko, and I'm a tour guide, interpreter and translator from Novosibirsk, Siberia. Planning a travel to Novosibirsk? I'm here to help you.

Guided Tours in Novosibirsk and Around

I offer tailor-made tours of and around Novosibirsk. Select one of the tours listed or send me a message with your wishes.

1. Historical downtown.
If you are short of time but want to have an idea of Novosibirsk, this tour is what you want. You will explore the main sights, like the magnificent Main Railway Station, the Ascension Cathedral (1913), the impressive Lenin Square with the grand Opera and Ballet Theatre, St.Nikolas Chapel (the former centre of the Russian Empire), the Alexander Nevsky Cathedral (1899), the busy and authentic Central Market, and a lot more. As all the main sights are easily accessible on foot, this one is a walking tour, but a bus/minibus/car is possible at extra payment. Multiple museums like the Siberian Birch Bark, the Nature and History Museum, the Novosibirsk Museum of Fine Arts, the Museum of Nikolas Roerich can be explored on the way.

Standard duration: 2-4 hours.

Walking or car-based: walking, but a car/bus and/or public transportation can be arranged.

Price: walking — 3000 rubles/50 USD per group; car-based — depending on the number of tourists and the type of vehicle.

Option: You have more spare time? Interested in wildlife? Want to have some fresh air? Go to the Novosibirsk Zoo, the largest in Europe. Find out more.

2. Academgorodok (the Academic Town),

the city part designed and built in the 50ies by Mr.Khruschev, the then Soviet Leader, together with the prominent academicians for the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Science. Hidden in the middle of the vast forest for security reasons, Academgorodok is still the greenest city part. Get off the bus or park your car at the beginning of Morskoy Avenue and take a walk along its streets, lanes and forest paths. On the way explore the magnificent new building and the modest but functional first building of the Novosibirsk State University, get immersed into the everyday life of a bright international crowd of students and scientists, and discover the unique and somewhat melancholy monument to a laboratory mouse. A visit to the Museum of Minerals, the Museum of Ethnography and Archaeology or the open-air Railway Museum will make your impressions complete. On your way either to or back explore the Ob Reservoir called the ‘Ob Sea’ by the locals due to its vastness.

Note! Combine the tour to Academgorodok with the historical downtown to get full impression of Novosibirsk, as since the end of the 50ies science has been one of the main activities here! Novosibirsk and Academgorodok are inseparable, so be sure to discover both.

Standard duration: 4-5 hours.

Walking or car-based: as Academgorodok is approximately 20 km away from the downtown, either public transportation or a car/minibus is required to get there. As soon as we get there, either walking or driving around is possible. Time permitting, I recommend walking, as it’s amidst the forest, so why not having some fresh air?

Price: public transportation + walking — 5000 rubles/80 USD per group; car-based — depending on the number of tourists and the type of vehicle.

3.Zaeltsovsky Park and the ethnic tea jurt. Explore the lifestyle, dwellings and traditional games and pastime of Eastern and Northern Siberian tribes and folks. Enjoy a delicious cup of traditional herbal tea in the authentic jurt and meditate to the sounds of tribal music.

Note: I recommend this as a supplement to the city tour, if you have some 2-3 extra hours.

4. Kolyvan(car-based). Founded back in the 18th century, Kolyvan is situated 40 km to the north of Novosibirsk. Before the railway bridge over the Ob river had been built in the late 19th century, Kolyvan was an important merchant town and a fortress in its earliest period. There are numerous old houses built in the 19th century bearing witness to its former splendor. Immerse into the Russian rural lifestyle and visit the peaceful Intercession Alexander Nevsky Monastery.

Duration: This tour normally lasts 3-4 hours. In summer different open-air events are held on a big lawn close to Kolyvan, so if lucky, you can experience something exciting.

Walking or car-based: Car-based, as Kolyvan is situated 40 km to the north of Novosibirsk.

Price: depending on the number of tourists and the type of vehicle. Please send me an inquiry providing the number of people in your group.

All these tours can be combined and expanded. Prices are negotiable and depend on the number of people in your group, the tour duration, the transportation, etc. Please send me an email with your wishes,

Have a longer stay in Novosibirsk? Its surroundings have a lot to offer! Choose one of the tours listed:

5. Bald peaks of Bugotak, the beginning of the huge Asian mountain land. Climb one of the peaks and enjoy the scenery! This car-based tour takes up to 6 hours.

Price: depending on the number of tourists and the type of vehicle. Please send me an inquiry providing the number of people in your group.

6. Berdskiye Skaly (Rocks on the Berd), approximately 150 km to the south-east of Novosibirsk, is the most spectacular place in Novosibirsk Region, often compared to Altai Mountains. This place is beautiful all the year round. A picnic with a campfire and some hiking will make your day a romantic and unforgettable adventure. Read more.

Duration: This tour can take up to 8 hours including a picnic and a short trekking.

Price: from 12000 rubles, depending on the number of tourists and the type of vehicle. Please send me an inquiry providing the number of people in your group.

7. Tomskaya Pisanitsa, an open-air museum with ancient rock paintings, samples of ancient dwellings, objects of arts and crafts of the Siberian tribes, a zoo and many other attractions. It is located 30 km to the north of Kemerovo, an industrial city involved in coal mining, and approximately 300 km away from Novosibirsk. This tour takes at least one full day (approximately 10 hours) taken the distance (appr.300 km one way). A night in Kemerovo is possible to make the tour less tiresome and more informative.

Price: from 20 000 rubles depending on the number of tourists and the type of vehicle. Please send me an inquiry providing the number of people in your group.

8. Tomsk, the city lying 250 km to the north of Novosibirsk. The nice city is over 400 years old. Explore its nice wooden houses, many old world-recognized universities, small unique museums, and plenty of other attractions. Have lunch or dinner in the legendary Vechny Zov restaurant or a cup of coffee in one of numerous cozy faces in the downtown. This tour takes at least one full day taken the distance (appr.250 km one way). I recommend a night in Tomsk to make the tour less tiresome and more informative and enjoyable. There are plenty of hostels and hotels, as well as apartments for rent. Tomsk is accessible by car/bus or by train.

Price: from 17 000 rubles depending on the number of tourists and the type of vehicle. Please send me an inquiry providing the number of people in your group.

9. Grand wooden church inTurnayevo village. On the way to of back from Tomsk take some 1.5 hours to look at this magnificent building dating back to the 19th century, the architecture of which resembles the famous Kizhi ensemble in Karelia. Built without a single nail, this impressive building dominates the small Turnayevo village.

Duration: The tour can take up to 7-8 hours taken the distance between Novosibirsk and Turnayevo (appr. 160 km). It\s best to combine it with a tour to Tomsk.

Price: from 12000 rubles, depending on the number of tourists and the type of vehicle. Please send me an inquiry providing the number of people in your group. From 18000 rubles, if combined with a tour to Tomsk.

Any other tour to any other place in Novosibirsk Region and the nearby areas. If you know what you want to explore, I will be happy to accompany you there. I will be happy to be your guide, assistant, and interpreter on your travel to other Siberian cities and towns like Biysk , Barnaul and Kemerovo .

Do not hesitate to contact me for more information, as well as to book a tour, via the ‘Ask Your Question’ page. All prices are negotiable and depend on a number of people in a group, etc.

I am looking forward to your visit to Novosibirsk and will be happy to guide you!